UK sign continuity trade agreement with Norway and Iceland

The UK has signed a new trade continuity agreement with Norway and Iceland.

A trade continuity agreement will see British businesses and consumers benefitting from continued trade with Iceland and Norway after the UK leaves the European Union.

Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioner to Europe, Andrew Mitchell, signed the UK- Iceland-Norway agreement on trade in goods in London yesterday with Stefán Haukur Jóhannesson, Ambassador of Iceland to the UK, and Wegger Christian Strømmen, Ambassador of Norway to the UK.

The agreement covers trade in goods and will only be used in a no deal scenario. It maintains the same level of tariffs on goods traded between the UK, Iceland and Norway.

Trading on these preferential terms in a no deal scenario, rather than on World Trade Organization terms, will deliver significant savings and help to safeguard British jobs.

British businesses could avoid up to £15m a year in tariff charges on exports that would otherwise apply if an agreement wasn’t in place.

The UK’s trade with Iceland and Norway was worth around £30bn last year, with just over £24bn of this in goods.

Consumers and businesses in the UK will continue to benefit from more choice and lower prices on goods imported from Iceland and Norway, such as aluminium products and some fuel and oil products.

HM Trade Commissioner for Europe Andrew Mitchell said: ”Today’s agreement secures continued preferences for goods trade with Iceland and Norway for British businesses, as we prepare to leave the EU. These are key trading partners with whom we have a longstanding and historic trading relationship.

“Our trade with Iceland and Norway was worth around £30bn last year, with just over £24bn of this in goods. This is good news for British businesses and we have a golden opportunity to further liberalise trade with these countries in the years ahead.”